It feels like déjà vu for the Eastern Women’s soccer team.
Despite finishing the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference season with one more point than the team did last year, the Panthers (5-7-6, 3-3-3) will still play in the OVC Tournament as the six seed.
The Panthers will be taking on the same exact team in the first round that beat them in the first round last season, the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks.
“It’s always been a good rivalry, but very reminiscent of 12 months ago,” Eastern’s head coach Dirk Bennett said.
Last season, Eastern beat SEMO in the regular season before it’s tournament loss. A year later, the Panthers prepare for the Redhawks having beaten them earlier in the season.
“[The players] are excited,” Bennett said. “I think it’s another opponent that we have a great rivalry with, but also a very good opportunity to string together a good run of form in the playoffs.”
Eastern begins conference play following a 0-0 draw against the Little Rock Trojans. Because the Trojans earned a point in the draw, they finished level on points with Lindenwood, who lost 2-0 to Tennessee Tech, to miss out on the regular season championship.
Lindenwood dropped to third, and instead of getting a bye to round three like the two teams above it, the Lions will host the winner of Eastern vs SEMO on Sunday.
Lindenwood’s field is turf, which is the surface that SEMO plays on as well. Bennett says the difference between grass and turf does play a factor, but Eastern’s ability to train on the O’Brien Field turf allows the team to get a sense of preparation for the bounces and feeling of turf.
“It’s really more about the environment than the surface,” Bennett said. “It’s a good solid surface. It mirrors what we train on.”
The Panthers have gone the entire season without winning a game that wasn’t at Lakeside Field for the fourth time in the last six years (0-4-4).
Eastern has had up and down results all season. The Panthers earned a point or better in all three games against the OVC’s top three teams, but lost games to a Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville team that finished ninth and missed the tournament and a UT Martin team that finished one point above SIUE in eighth.
Part of the reason for the fluctuating results is the young players, which for the entire season have played a role in the on-field performance. Ten of the 18 players that played against Little Rock are either true freshmen or sophomores.
“We still have a lot of youth in the team, age wise and experience wise,” Bennett said. “By now though, those excuses are out the window. Everyone’s a veteran of an OVC season and of a regular season.”
Eastern returned a key member to its defense, with senior Elisa Solis coming back to play 24 minutes against Little Rock. Solis has been out since Sept. 29, when she pulled up limping with a hamstring injury after 17 minutes in the 1-1 draw at Southern Indiana.
Bennett says since Solis’ had some time to recover, and she wants to try and play through her injury and help the team in her final season.
“We will see how she’s feeling moving forward and fingers crossed she can contribute a bit,” Bennett said.
To reach the NCAA tournament, Eastern must win the OVC tournament for the first time since 2004. To do that they would need to beat SEMO and then beat Lindenwood. Eastern drew 0-0 with the Lions at Lakeside Field.
The Panthers would then take on Little Rock in the semifinals. Should Eastern win its semifinal matchup, it will play the winner of Tennessee Tech against the other semifinalist.
Eastern begins with SEMO on Thursday. Kickoff at Lindenwood is set for 7 p.m.
Gabe Newman can be reached at 581-2812 or at ghnewman@eiu.edu.
